Uttar Pradesh: Journalist who told about ‘salt-roti’ being given to children in mid-day meal dies

Journalist Pawan Jaiswal, a resident of Mirzapur district of Uttar Pradesh, died on Thursday morning. He was suffering from cancer. His treatment was going on in a hospital in Varanasi.

Pawan came into the limelight in August 2019 after exposing the issue of ‘salt-roti’ being served to children in mid-day meal in a school in Mirzapur district. Because of bringing this news in front of everyone, the district administration had lodged an FIR against him. However, later he got a clean chit in this case.

In August 2019, a video went viral on social media, in which about 100 students studying from class I to VIII in a government school located in Shiur in Jamalpur area of ​​Mirzapur district distributed roti and salt as mid-day meal. had gone. In the video, children were seen eating rotis with salt sitting on the floor in the verandah of the school.

Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi also tweeted a video of children being served ‘salt-roti’ in the mid-day meal.

Journalist Pawan Jaiswal, who was reporting it for his newspaper Jansandesh Times, had made this video, after which went viral, a case was registered against him in the administration for deliberately making the video fraudulently and obstructing government work by making it viral. Was.

About a month ago, journalist Pawan Jaiswal had informed about his illness to Aam Aadmi Party MP Sanjay Singh on WhatsApp. Then he wrote that now he does not have money to buy even daily medicines.

After this, Sanjay Singh had requested people to help Pawan Jaiswal by tweeting. Sanjay Singh had provided immediate assistance of one lakh rupees and assured of further help. After this many journalists also helped him.

After learning about his death, Sanjay Singh tweeted and said, ‘Pawan Jaiswal ji, known for his brave journalism at the national level by publishing the news of children getting salt bread in school, passed away today after a long illness of cancer. May God rest his soul in peace and give strength to his family members to bear this immense pain.

Last year, after Pawan was diagnosed with oral cancer, there was a big crisis in the family. All the deposit capital of the house was spent in his treatment. Mother and wife sold their jewellery, even after this they could not raise enough money for their treatment.

Pawan had some problem in his mouth last year. Then a biopsy was done on the advice of doctors in Varanasi, then cancer of the mouth was found. Pawan decided to fight cancer. He also had an operation in September 2021. When he returned after being hospitalized for months, the merge increased once again.

According to the report, in March this year, when Pawan had a problem, he again showed the doctor. In the investigation, it was found to reach the throat of the infection. On the advice of doctors, the operation was done again. Some journalist companions came forward to help the financially broken Pawan, but he could not be saved.

Pawan had told that on the night of 31 August 2019, about 10 days after the news of ‘salt-roti’ being served in the mid-day meal, he, his source and a senior colleague were served by the Basic Education Officer (BSA) office on the instructions of the District Magistrate. A case was registered against him that the video has been prepared fraudulently.

Describing his entry into journalism, he had said, ‘I am a resident of Ahraura town of Mirzapur. I have studied from Banasthali College here and I am failed B.Com. Many people of my identity were journalists and by going with them I used to make videos, do coverage and in this way gradually I got into this line journalism.

In this interview, he told that there are six sisters and five brothers in his family. His father runs a stationery shop. He used to run a mobile shop next to him.

In the initial phase, he was the General Secretary of BJP’s local youth front for four years, but after joining journalism, he left all this.

He had opened a mobile shop by taking a loan of two lakh rupees from the bank. Apart from working for Jansandesh Times, he was also associated with electronic media. He also acted as a source or assistant to the journalists of the big media organizations of Delhi.